Review - Fashion Beast

Review by Paul Fiander
Script; Alan Moore
Story; Alan Moore & Malcolm McLaren 
Sequential Adaptation; Antony Johnston
Art and Covers; Facundo Percio
Tarot Card Design; Paul Duffield
Colour; Herman Cabrera
Letters; Jaymes Reed
Can a thirty year old story centred on fashion still be relevant?
Simply the answer is yes, but to find out why we have to delve into the basis the comic was created around. 

The writer Alan Moore is one of those names that even casual readers know, his back catalogue of Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell among other titles are some of the highest regarded comics of our time. Similarly Malcolm McLaren (the man largely responsible for the initiation of the Punk movement) is one of those names that you just know if you are of a certain age. Where McLaren’s genius lay is a way to fuse ideas to create a culture, he was able to achieve this through music and fashion with the punk era due to his connections and knowledge around both industries. It was one of these fusion ideas that brought him to the meeting with Moore, McLaren wanted to create a film that fused two key elements Beauty and the Beast and the life of Christian Dior (again another one of those names you must have heard). Later Moore was asked to include principles from Flashdance and Chinatown by McLaren and you can see these ideas permeating in the story all the way through. The collected issues I read have a forward by Moore which will explain the whole situation with a lot more eloquence but I do think this back-story helps to explain the setting for the story.

I must admit I know nothing of fashion, most of the time I dress according to mother like “I always have my eyes closed”. However for some fashion is a culture that can absorb and consume their entire life and much like films, books and games elements of the medium will naturally filter through to all areas of society. Within the context of the story Moore has taken this filtering through effect and created a whole society based on two aspects fashion and war. 

The story is set in an ambiguous time and place with very little back-story except we know we are in the midst of Nuclear winter. From this horrendously bleak environment the Celestine fashion house shines out like a shining beacon that unites the populous in either hatred or devotion for all that the brand stands for. In one of early sequences we see the contrast in imagery of the picketers outside the front with those hoping to join the house as a model queued outside the back of the building shows the same level of anarchy just for differing reasons. The want to be models do come across as sheep as when told to conform to the Designers wishes they all dutifully comply with out a world of protest except for Doll. 
Doll Seguin is the main thread around which the book is built and as a central character Moore has created a visually and psychologically complex character. Doll’s appearance is slightly ambiguous meaning you have to ask yourself as do many of the other characters on the pages if, he is a she or she is a he. It’s a touch of brilliance to keep you guessing throughout the first episodes and serves to attack our preconceptions of beauty and they way it is portrayed in-between the pages of a book such as this. We are often shown the traditional Amazonian physique in some comics like Wonder Woman or the highly sexualised images of characters like Harley Quinn but what most female portrayals have in common is the idea of femininity and beauty.  Doll questions our ideas and is very much in keeping with today’s model culture of an androgynous shaped women strutting down the catwalk. 

The rest of the visuals within the pages create a mix of the demure colours of the outside world as well as the fashion house itself. However just like the neon sign on top of the Celestine building it’s the adornments that are worn that bring colour into the world. Throughout you are reminded that story is based in the world of fashion and that is a world I felt very much at home inhabiting. The story does bend a little to cliché but the journey you take will keep you on your toes. The central characters serve to help Doll and the reader understand the world, both inside and outside of Celestine. The cast of characters are a wonderful mix especially the designer himself who is equally as complex as Doll.

Unfortunately there were a few shortcomings but I feel I am to blame for these with a slight bit of the blame focused onto the comic medium. To me this story feels like it needs music, there are occasions where the idea of a silent environment is expressed but for me the rest of the world should be filled to the brim with a variety of music. I am not very good at imagining music so feel I lose out slightly while reading. It is not a major problem and for those of you with a musical vein you will love the stimulation the story will give you. It does make me wish I had the opportunity to see this as a film but I would worry that its political overtones would be eroded if it were too made for the silver screen, but with Moore now dabbling in film you can never say never.
My first question was can this story still be relevant in today’s society and it does amaze me how this work could easily be set in 2013 as easily as 1985 (with the exception of the nuclear winter). In reflection is this the genius of Moore or just a reflection of how little society has moved on. The political overtones are there for all to see through the continuing war and the general population’s inequality of wealth. Its these ideas that take books like this away from the hum drum of “switch you mind off” story telling that can be seen in all forms of media. This story has something to say and it does it very well.

Fashion beast is just that a total beast of a story it will ravage your ideas and leave you frightened sitting up a tree if you’re not careful. It does have flaws but these will be blown away by the complex characters and the themes they bring up. Just go in with an open mind and you will not be disappointed

Wrap Up

The Good - Wonderful lead characters, intriguing themes,

The Bad - Clichéd story at points, will not appeal to all readers

4.5/5
Images courtesy of Titan Books & Avatar
Comic - Provided by Titan Books